Posted by Lieutenant Commander Gravel Mardusk (Chief of Security) in Side Sim - A Much Needed Vacay

Posted by Lieutenant Cara Esmé O’Farrell (Counselor / Education Specialist) in Side Sim - A Much Needed Vacay

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Gravel Mardusk (Chief of Security) in Side Sim - A Much Needed Vacay
Posted by… suppressed (24) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)
“You tryin’ to bankrupt this town, Ronan?” Gravel asked and the roar of laughter was almost deafening. Gravel finished chatting and made his way to Cara. “Gods above and below, do these people ever stop talking?” he asked with a grin.

Gravel

Ronan laughed too, “Either way I’m still in business.”

Cara shrugged, “No often. They had stopped talkin’ and ya got them goin’ again.” She stretched up, resting her hands against his chest. “Thank ya.” Then she kissed him. Which of course got the attention of everyone there, and started a round of cheers, whistles, and encouragement. Cara grinned. “Let’s get outta here.”

Cara

“Don’t have to tell me twice.” Gravel said and stood up, scooped Cara up off the floor and cradled her in one arm. “Night everybody. See ya to.orrow, I’m sure.” The pub whistled and laughed and Gravel walked them both out the door.

Outside, he turned towards Cara’s family’s house. “You got a good group back there, doll. Good people.”

Gravel

Cara laughed softly. “We have good people. They’re as much yers now as mine, and they won’a let ya forget it either.” She turned in his arm and kissed him as if they were completely alone and not in the middle of the main street.

Then she slowly slid off his arm to her feet. “As much as we enjoy ya carryin’ me around it does funny things ta my memory. If the garda come askin’ more questions I need ta have a properly functionin’ memory.” She laughed at her own expense as she slid her hand into his. “Ya know the reception Ronan is goin’ ta plan will last for days.”

When they reached the house, she set off across the yard and began to remove their clothes from the line. A quiet whimper and soft scrapping reached them in the decending dusk. Cara looked toward the back of the house. “Sam!?” She waited a moment and called again, “Sam!” A massive four legged form came trotting around the side of the house - an Irish wolfhound. Tongue lolling, tail wagging he made his way over to Cara. He stopped and stared at Gravel. Cara reached down and pet him. “Good boy.” He sniffed all over Cara and licked her hand once without taking his eyes off the stranger. He didn’t bark or growl though. “Come on,” she led him towards Gravel. “Say hi, Sam.” The dog dutifully sat and raised one front paw off the ground to ‘shake’ even as his nose stretched forward to sniff the newcomer.

Cara

Gravel moved forward cautiously and held out his hand, palm forward. He didn’t say anything, he just let the dog smell his hand and stayed quiet for a moment. After a minute or so, he said “Sam… ‘ej qeylIS lutoy’moHchugh, vaj qeylIS.” The dog’s ears perked up and it seemed to stand just a little taller. Gravel smiled and slowly reached forward and scratched his ears. Gravel looked at Cara and said with a grin “All animals that hunt respond very well to the Klingon language.”

Gravel

Cara ran a hand down the dog’s back. “They recognize a kindred spirit.” Sam leaned into the ear scratches. After a moment, he sniffed Gravel again, then sniffed Cara all over, and began to wag his tail as if figuring out they belonged together. Cara grinned and gave him a pat and went to finish retrieving their clothes. Sam ran for the door and scratched at it. “I’m comin’. I know they were no home when they should be. I’ll feed ya.” His tail wagged so hard it made his whole body wag with it. Cara opened the door and Sam shot inside and soon loud laps of water could be heard from the kitchen. Cara tapped the controls by the door and the lights came on. She set the clothes down with their bags and headed for the kitchen. “I’ll feed him and then we can decide if ya want ta go ta The Pods or stay here tanight.”

Cara

“Anywhere I can sleep is where I want to go.” Gravel said and tried to stifle a yawn, and was mostly successful. “It has been a long-ass day, that’s for sure.”

Gravel

“Aye, too long,” Cara agreed from the kitchen. “Top o’ the stairs, first door on the left. That’s my room. Go see if ya can be comfortable there.” She knew her parents had not changed a thing since she left. It was filled with momentos and trophies of a sassy teenage and younger version of Cara. The room had an extra large queen bed in it. “If no we’ll make the hike ta the Pods, or ask for a transport will be faster.” Cara fed and refilled Sam’s water dish. She spied a fresh raspberry walnut soda bread on the counter. She cut two slices off, wrapped it back up, and went looking for Gravel.

Cara

Gravel was in the room, looking at the various bits and pieces of Cara’s past. When she came in, he grinned. “You as a teenager… I thought you were a handful now.”

Gravel

Cara laughed. “Well the t-shirt does say ‘I’m the middle daughter and the reason we have rules.’ Lucky for ya, I’ve calmed down a bit since then.” He was looking at a picture of her and several friends surrounded by some very irrate adults. Cara was obviously laughing. The background showed what could only be considered either vandalism or the remnants of an epic party. She was about 13. “Emilia told me how the seniors played a prank every year. So I decided since we were the junior high seniors we would do the same. The administration didn’a appreciate the new decor.”

Cara

“I can only imagine…” Gravel said with a smile. He looked at another picture. Two figures, one obviously Cara, stood in front of what looked like the remnants of a very old stone house. “Where is this one?” he asked. “And who is that? Doesn’t look like anyone I’ve met so far.”

Gravel

“That is close ta the township of Waterford. Near that house is the ruins of a Rath, or Fairy Fort. It was supposedly a strong hold of the Fir Bolgs. The place is a large Lis descendin’ inta the ground for about two feet, and then underneath for about four yards. At the end is a round room.

“This room is built around with brick on either side. In the left hand side there is a trap door and a long dismal passage goin’ down for about three feet and then ya can hear the soft lappin’ of the river. About three miles down is the river. The Lis is surrounded by a deep trench goin’ all around it. Reference

“The ruins of that house belongs ta a woman who was widowed with a young daughter. One day, supposedly the daughter wandered inta the Rath. She was bewitched by the fairies she found there and was taken by the queen as her own daughter. When the fairy queen died, the little girl became the Queen.” Pointing at the other girl, “That’s Shannon. We stayed over night in the house. The legend says that if young girls go pickin’ flowers there in May they will hear the fairy music and be drawn ta the Rath and become bewitched.” Cara laughed, “Obviously, the queen didn’a want us.”

Cara

“Oh hell no she didn’t.” Gravel said and grinned at Cara. “You’d be too much of a handful, even for a buncha faires.” and he chuckled. He looked back at the picture and then thought for a moment. “Think the whole fairy thing was concocted by the mom to assuage her grief? Or maybe even her guilt at not watching over her kid better?”

Gravel

Cara nodded, “Probably. I’m no sayin’ there were no faeries. There are far too many stories of strange creatures with strange powers ta dismiss them all. And we know now that aliens visited Earth off and on. However, that seems ta be the trend. When somethin’ happens that can no be made sense of, blame the faeries. The story allows her to feel her daughter is forever young, healthy, and beautiful, and it releases her of any guilt. No one is strong enough ta withstand a fae’s enchantment, so even if she had been there, she could no have stopped it.”

“Faeries never met me.” Gravel said with a wink.

“Fae enchantments don’na work on each other, ya big green Sidhe.” She grinned at him, her green eyes dancing. “Yers certainly worked on me.” Cara laughed softly as she stretched up and kissed him.

Cara pointed to another one. “That’s where we’re goin’, Mahon Falls. That’s my grandfather.”

Cara

Gravel looked at the picture. The man reminded him of Cara in many ways. “It looks great. So tell me about him. What was he like? Think he’d mind you marryin’ a green-skinned alien?” and he laughed.

Gravel

Cara stared at the picture smiling. “Patient and wise, never met a stranger. Ta me, he seemed ta know everythin’, could do anythin’. He was larger than life. I never saw him lose his temper or heard him raise his voice. Though I have heard stories. It didn’na happen often. People listened when he talked.” She chuckled. “I asked him once how he did it. He told me ta always whisper, then people have ta shut up ta hear what yer sayin’.” She nodded at the various trophies on a shelf. “He convinced mam and dadai ta put me in martial arts. Said it shouldn’a be a choice - I kept gettin’ lost and that could lead ta trouble.” Then she laughed, “They don’na know it, but he had taught me ta fight dirty long before that.” She looked up at him, “He would have had ya take a walk with him. He would have told ya all the stories about our town and Ireland, our family, and the people. Shown ya everythin’. He’d be happy, never think twice about it.”

Cara

Gravel nodded and then said “I take it he was your mom’s dad?” and he looked back at the picture. “I always wondered what my grandparents were like. My mom knew… knows?… whatever… them, but has never said a word about ‘em. Leads me to believe I probably don’t wanna know myself.”

Gravel

Cara shook her head, “Dadai’s. Mam’s parents died when we were very little. I don’na remember them much. Emilia remembers them the best. I told you were they were backwards in their thinkin’ about medicine and such, but they were very carring people. Mam’s mom made hand made Irish lace.” Cara opened up a small box. It was filled with pieces if lace and small skins of very fine thin yarn. She took out two pieces. “This one is from Mam’s family and this pattern is from Dadai’s. We learned how ta make both growin’ up. Been passed down for centuries.”

Gravel looked at it and nodded in appreciation. “Wow… that’s beautiful. I would never have had the patience to do something like that.”

Cara laughed, “I don’na either. It was non-negotiable ta learn. Part of our heritage. At the time I didn’a want ta learn. Now I’m glad I did. Ava is really brilliant at it though.”

“You should ask yer mom about it if yer curious. Even if ya never want ta meet them, better ta know than be surprised later. The worst she can say is she doesn’na want ta talk about them.”

Cara

Gravel shrugged and said “Meh. I figure if she wanted me to know, she’d have told me by now. And it’s not like it matters. I’m pretty sure if I actually wanted to know, I could find out. Never even looked myself, so it’s obviously not that important to me.”

Gravel

Cara nodded, some things were better left a mystery. “Well, ya will have plenty of family after Wednesday. Yer mom and dad are pretty impressive though all by themselves. If ya want a taste of grandparents we’ll go visit my gran tamorrow afternoon. Dadai’s mam is still alive. She hasn’t slowed down yet.”

Cara closed the small box with the lace and handed him a slice of the raspberry walnut soda bread she brought up with her. “So, ya wanna stay here or head ta the pods? We both could use the sleep.”

Cara

Gravel took the bread and ate it in a bite. Chewing, he looked at the bed and said “Pods. That is no way gonna fit both of us.” He took one last look around, swallowed, and said “Ok. Let’s go crash. It has been a hell of a day.”

Gravel

The pods were a half mile from her parents house, outside of the village. Not a bad walk, but Cara was done. Cara settled Dam for the night, grabbed her bag and coat, and locked the door. She went to the comm station in the living room and spoke to a blond haired woman. A moment later swirling transporter motes engulfed them and set them down in front of a wooden domed long house.

The sign said ‘The Pods’ above the door. There was a map of the area marking the locations of the various pods. It was closed. Cara tugged a key card out of her pocket and stared at the map. “Pod 11.” Problem was she couldn’t figure out which actual trail led where, even though she found it easily on the map.

Cara

Gravel chuckled. “Here.” and he took the key card and led her down a path to their left. It was quite dark, but Gravel seemed to navigate the trail easily. He stopped her after a few minutes and said “Here we are.”

Gravel

“It’s no funny Grah-VEL. It’s annoyin’.” Normally she was more than willing to lauagh at her own expense. Tonight it was frustrating.

It was quite dark, and there was a lack of artifical light. However, that meant the night sky was ablaze with stars and an almost full moon. The pod, like the main office, was a long building with walls that curved up to form the roof. This one had a 15 ft clearance and 15 foot wide. The walls and front were solid. The card unlocked the door and the lights came up softly.

The pod was one long room. The front was a small dinning area with a table, 2 chairs, a small chiller, and coffee pot. Past that was the bedroom. A massive double California king bed took up the entire area. There was a dresser and two bedside tables. The focal point was the ceiling - all glass allowing the night sky to illuminate the room.

Past that was a short hallway. A door to the left led to a truly luxurious bathroom. The floor was slate. The back half was a full open shower, with 3 rainfall shower heads. To the right was a sink and facilities. The entire rest of the area was a sunken tub big enough for Gravel to completely stretch out in and then room.

At the end of the hall was a small living area. A large couch that could double as a bed, a natural wood table, and video screen. The back wall was floor to ceiling, wall to wall, glass door and windows. There was a back patio facing the mountains and stream that ran through. Steam was coming off a private jacuzzi.

Gravel whistled appreciatively. “Now this is what I call a hotel. Hell. Yes.” He dropped his bag on the floor and wandered through the place for a moment. He eyed the tub for a long moment and then decided of he got in it, he’d never make it out before passing out.

Cara put her bag down, shrugged out of her coat and kicked off her shoes. She dug through her bag for a long t-shirt before making quick work of the rest of her clothes.

Cara

Gravel grinned as she shucked her clothes and said “Now there is a sight I’ll never get tired of seein’.” and he laughed. “I’m gonna shower and then collapse in that bed. I hope you will join me for both of those.” and he turned and walked towards the bathroom, casually dropping g clothes as he did so. Not that he was trying to be seductive… he was actually just too tired to pick them up.

Gravel

“That’s good for you, cause your stuck with this sight for the rest of yer life.” Cara chuckled as she dropped the last piece of clothing. No matter how tired she might be, Cara would never turn down that invitation. “I will never turn down that invitation.” She let out a wolf whistle as he walked away. “And look, ya left me a trail ta follow so I don’na get lost.” Cara grinned, despite the day, she was incredibly happy.

Cara

“It’s a single hallway in a single building.” Gravel said as he turned on the shower. “Of course I left you trail. You’d get lost in this shower if I wasn’t here.” He stepped into the hot water and let the water fall across his emerald skin. Closing his eyes, he exhaled a long breath and tried to release some of the tension from the day.

Gravel

Cara shook her head with a grin. “As long as I keep my eyes on you I won’na get lost.” She grabbed a small disk off the counter and let it drop under the hot water as she stepped in. It began to dissolve and turn into a warm lavender scented vapor.

There were quiet sounds as Cara picked up a bottle and then put it back. She spread the soap over both hands and then began to lather it across his back. It had a warm woodsy scent. It wasn’t just soap though. It was also a muscle rub. It heated as she lathered it across his back, shoulders, and arms.

Cara

Knotted and tense muscles twitched and spasmed under her fingers pressure, but eventually gave way and Gravel sighed. “I didn’t realize I was so wound up.” He said softly. He put his hands on the wall and leaned forward, taking some of the direct weight off his lower back. “Feel like I’ve gone five rounds with the Captain about policy changes in her Ready Room.” and he chuckled.

Gravel

Cara poured more of the soap into her palms and worked it into a lather. “Well it was goin’ ta be a full evenin’ even before Liam and his nephew started trouble.” Then, after he leaned forward she began to work at his lower back, which seemed even more tight than his shoulders had been. “Does that mean ya got another headache?” They had cured headaches long ago, but tension headaches had to do with tight muscles and not enough blood flow. The best thing for those was to relax the muscles. Sleep, massage, a hot soak, or medication. Cara had the first three ready at hand.

Cara